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Collina: “I went that extra mile”

What makes a good referee? He must be genuine, according to Pierluigi Collina, who lifts the lid on the secrets of his success.

- Mr. Collina, how does a referee achieve celebrity status?

- Pierluigi Collina: I’m afraid I don’t have an answer to that question.

- You were the first and only referee in the history of the game to become a star. Surely you must have a few tips for your colleagues who are set to officiate at the World Cup in Brazil?

- What I always tried to do was take my job as seriously and work as conscientiously as possible.

- You were named FIFA’s Referee of the Year on six consecutive occasions – an all-time record. What did you do better than the rest?

- I went about my work very professionally from the outset. Maybe I just did more than was absolutely necessary. At the end of the ’90s, referees had to know the rulebook inside out and be physically fit. Those were the only requirements, but I went that extra mile. Before a game, I would find out everything I could about the teams and the individual players. Before the 2002 World Cup Final in Japan and Korea, I spent a lot of the time in my hotel room with my colleagues watching videos of the teams. I studied their moves and peculiarities and discussed them with my team. If you’ve done your homework, you can’t be taken by surprise.

- So a good referee must never leave anything to chance?

- Definitely not. A good referee is always a step ahead of the game. He must be able to anticipate what’s going to happen. Only a referee who knows how a game will unfold can be in the right place at the right time, spot incidents and consequently make the right decisions. A referee who fails to keep up with proceedings will eventually lose the plot.

- Is a good referee lenient or is he strict?

- A good referee is right. I always set great store by giving my all and being fair to everyone. I’m convinced that those are the attributes of a good referee.

- Did you ever make any incorrect decisions which you subsequently regretted?

- Regret is the wrong word. Rather, I was sorry about making a wrong decision.

- How did you react?

- I analysed it at length and asked myself why I had made the wrong decision. For every mistake, there’s an explanation. Why did I make that mistake? Did I not prepare well enough? Those were the questions I asked myself. After that, it’s important to forget about an incorrect decision. You mustn’t let it get the better of you. After making a wrong decision, it’s vital to return to the pitch stronger than you were before.

- Should a good referee have to apologise for making a wrong decision?

- Why should I apologise? I only apologise if I’ve done something on purpose. After all, I tried my best, tried to do the right thing, and I made a mistake.

- What’s your strongest attribute?

- I commit myself completely to a task and always try to give my best.

- And your greatest weakness?

- I find it very difficult to admit to mistakes. If a player misses a penalty, he’s consoled by his team-mates. If tens of thousands of people are shouting abuse at the referee, he has nobody to turn to. It’s true that a referee needs a thick skin. That’s one of the prerequisites if you want to become a referee in the first place. You have to be able to put a certain distance between yourself and what happens or can happen on the pitch if you want to survive in the job. You definitely have to be able to cope with stress.

- Some referees fail to cope with the pressure and are forced to quit.

- In every walk of life, there are certain people who cope better with stress than others. If a referee is officiating at a high level, he’s already proven he can cope with stress.

- How did you keep calm when you knew you’d be officiating a match in front of not only 80,000 spectators in the stadium, but also billions of people watching on television?

- You can’t allow that thought to enter your head. A referee has to learn to cope with the significance of a game. I always tried to approach every match as if it were just a normal game and handle every game as if it were a World Cup final. The latter is obviously more difficult.

- So you basically have to go against your natural instincts?

- I always tried to officiate with complete concentration. I once refereed a match between Manchester United and Real Madrid on a Wednesday and a Serie B match in Italy three days later. It’s easy to find the necessary concentration for the first one, but it’s more difficult for the -

- Who are the better actors? The players or the referee?

- The referee mustn’t be an actor – he has to be genuine. If a referee pretends to be something he’s not, you notice it straight away.

- What’s the worst thing a player can do on the football field?

- Definitely simulation, by which I mean achieving an objective through deceit. You’re not only cheating the referee and the opposition, but also the fans. Deliberately distorting a result has nothing to do with winning. This aspect of the game deserves more attention.

- Doesn’t it make your blood boil when you see a player dive on multiple occasions during a match?

- No, you mustn’t let your blood boil, but the player must be shown a yellow card.

- When I looked you up for our first interview ten years ago, your name was still in the phone book. It’s become a lot more difficult to contact you these days.

- I know and I regret that, but certain circumstances have made this necessary.

- What circumstances?

- Unfortunately, I suffered the unpleasant experience of receiving anonymous threats when bullets were sent to me. I was then placed under police protection and all my movements were closely monitored.

- Your protection in Italy was similar to that of a state prosecutor who is conducting investigations into gang warfare.

- More or less. It wasn’t a pleasant experience. It’s not nice walking out of the house flanked by two police officers.

- Who threatened you?

- The culprits were never caught. The threats eventually stopped, but it’s sad that something like that can happen in football.

- You became a star among referees, but because officials in Italy don’t work professionally – as is the case in most other countries – you also had another job.

- I worked for many years as a freelance financial advisor for a bank, which was compatible with my job as a referee.

- A referee has to be just as fit as the players on the pitch. Statistics have shown that a player runs between 10 and 11 kilometres per game, while referees run between 10 and 12. The main difference is that players train every day, while many referees are stuck in an office. Is that fair?

- Referees need time to prepare, not just physically. In most countries, referees are paid per match. In some countries they get more, in others less, but it’s important that a referee has enough time to prepare for a match as best he can. Obviously, preparation starts well before a match, and it goes without saying that a referee must also be paid sufficiently for the time he spends preparing for a game.

- You’re now 54 years old, but still seem incredibly fit.

- I try to stay in shape, but it’s not always easy with all the travelling I do. It’s not as though you give up physically and let yourself go. I live by the sea and love to go jogging on the beach.

- You’ve since become the head of the UEFA Referees Committee. Does that lead to rivalry with former colleagues, such as Massimo Busacca, who is FIFA’s Head of Refereeing Development?

- Not at all. Massimo and I had and still have a great relationship with each other. We even used to go on holiday together with our families. That makes it a lot easier to exchange views with him nowadays. I’m very happy about that.

- Are there still loopholes in the referees’ rule book that could be amended?

- There are certain loopholes.

- Could you describe one of them?

- Let’s say a player commits a foul and receives a yellow card. In committing the foul, he’s also injured an opposition player who has to leave the field to receive treatment. As soon as he has left the field, the game restarts and the team that committed the foul has a numerical advantage. In a sporting sense, that isn’t fair. The team that committed the foul is essentially rewarded as they can play on with an extra man. It would make more sense to change the rules so the offending player has to leave the pitch until the injured player is able to return to the field with him again.

- Why are many referees so fussy about the correct way to take a throw-in? Hardly anyone throws the ball with both feet on he ground and their hands behind their heads.

- The rules are quite clear. Sometimes, referees can be a little less strict in these situations, as a throw-in is not regarded as a particularly important moment in a match.

- So a referee needs to have an exceptional ability to interpret the rules of the game correctly.

- Yes, he does.

- In addition, a good referee must possess complete self-control and an understanding of other people’s faults.

- That’s correct.

- Does that mean a good referee has to be the perfect psychologist?

- That’s exaggerating things a little, but as a referee you do need a certain insight into human nature. You have to be able to read players’ body language and know how to treat people properly. For example, if I stand too close to a player or even touch them, I’m encroaching on his personal space. If anything, that’s likely to be counter-productive, so I make sure I don’t stand too close to a player.

- Did you study psychology?

- No, I studied economics, but I’ve read a few books on the subject.

- Can a referee afford to be sensitive?

- Yes, as long as that doesn’t mean that the referee is isolated. If, by sensitive, you mean that the referee shows passion then yes, he has to be sensitive.

- Can you explain why anyone with all these qualities would be prepared to accept a modest wage and be exposed to major stress on a regular basis?

- There’s no need to dwell on the pressures facing referees. Let’s talk a bit about the advantages of the job. Many aspects are extremely enjoyable. I shared a pitch with some fantastic players and had the privilege to officiate top matches. After the World Cup final between Brazil and Germany in 2002, I received a medal from FIFA President Joseph Blatter. For a referee, that’s equivalent to winning the World Cup as a player.

- It’s hard to imagine someone choosing to be a referee of his own free will.

- That’s not what I did. I was a footballer myself and when I was 17, several people told me I had a talent for refereeing. They thought I had an extraordinary ability to make split-second decisions and to justify these to older players. To this day, I am very grateful to the people who gave me that tip.

- Thanks for not losing your patience during this interview. That’s what must have made you the world’s most famous referee.